Sup Matt! Tell us a bit about yourself and your time at Nexus? I used to write a column called ‘Making living cheaper with Honest Matt’. It was dodgy (borderline criminal) financial advice for poor students. I won columnist of the year for 2012 and got really drunk at House.
Also, that same year, I got nominated for humourist of the year at the Aotearoa Student Press Association Awards (ASPAs). We went down with the Nexus crew to wellington. I lost to a dude called Rhys Mathiewson (now on 7 days). To numb the pain, I smoked weed in a graveyard.
Thanks for funding it Waikato Uni.
What is The Tavern? The Tavern is a Kiwi comedy feature film set in Cambridge about “five small town guys who have a race against time to save their beloved yet run down pub from an evil Ponsonby property developer with sinister plans”.
Where can we watch it? Streaming now on TVNZ +
What was the project like to act in? It was mega fun. It’s so nice to cool to say aloud the crazy thoughts in your head with other people.
Who were the coolest actors to work with? A guy called Tom Easden who played a character called Tomo. He did my washing and made me watch reruns of Dawsons Creek between rehearsals.
How would you describe the film’s cinematography? Probably the best thing about it. We had a dude called Jared Jones behind the camera. The dude is a creative machine. Tried to take a lot of inspo from those early 2000s comedies like Step Brothers etc.
What’s the editing style like? Like an opera. Slow when it needs to be slow. Chaotic when it needs to be. Shout out to fave Frenchmen Gui Arnoulett who put it together.
How did you get a feature film made in Aotearoa? Just pick up a camera and make something. There really are no barriers anymore.
Search up ‘Blue Moon’. It’s an NZ feature film filmed on an Iphone with 1 location and 4 actors. Anyone can do it.
How could students get more involved in the Waikato and NZ film scenes? Sign up to the Waikato Screen database and come to some networking events. It’s all about rubbing shoulders with fellow film lovers. The barrier to entry is pretty low. Its a pretty inclusive scene.
Did you prefer acting, writing, or producing The Tavern and why? Writing. It’s like the calm before the storm.
How drunk did you get the folks in your videos reviewing the film? You know when you’re waiting for your Uber and someone is playing ‘Unwritten’ by Nathasha Beddingfield on a UE boom. They start dancing on the table. The table can’t support their weight. They fall off the table. Start bleeding. The uber takes you to the hospital instead of House. That drunk.
What does low-budget cinema have that Hollywood doesn’t? Ticker. A wise man said to me you can make a film without money but it’s got to have heart. These low-budget films can be rough around the edges, but you can feel the heart shine through. You can tell some of these Hollywood ones are made in a boardroom.
Fuck, marry, kill, Netflix, Disney+, and Amazon Prime? The free service that is TVNZ+ is all you in your life.
What other NZ filmmakers should students check out? A fella called Haydn Butler (Waikato Uni alumni) made a film called ‘Home Kills’. Catch it on Amazon Prime. Blends comedy and drama together seamlessly.
‘Hang Time’ by Cathsaigh O’Fiannachta. Also streaming in TVNZ+. Both are great case studies of making an achievable feature with minimal characters/locations but a great story.
Any upcoming projects? Nah not at present. My mate Graham Lauder has a film coming out called AU3. He made a spaceship in his shed in Tokoroa. The world has been crying out for more Tokoroa inspired space comedies. Keep an eye out for that one.
And lastly, can I have a copy of the film to watch for free? Streaming now on TVNZ+ ya cheap bastard.
